Artist & Writer’s Workbook 2016
(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//forms.aweber.com/form/65/114379965.js"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }(document, "script", "aweber-wjs-1pkfkcpzf")); It's the time of year again to look back and plan ahead, so I am happy to present you with the Artist & Writer's Workbook 2016. It's free; you just have to fill out [...]
A Comfort Book – Ted Kooser’s Local Wonders
The other day I cast about for a comfort book, something pleasant to read in the tub after a busy day. Usually that would mean an Agatha Christie mystery for me, all of which I reread for the umpteenth time. But that evening I didn't even feel like dealing with their mild malice, even though it is always triumphed over [...]
The Smells of Fall
There's no denying that we are at the tail end of fall here in the Midwest. The temperature dips below the freezing at night, the trees are almost bare, and the leaves are on the ground. A walk outside means being steeped in the smells of fall. I happen to love the smells of fall, and so I thought [...]
Winter Break In
We had a winter break in this past weekend. I know this is not the proper use of the English term "break in;" rather, it is a literal translation of the German term "Wintereinbruch." I decided to put forth this unusual use of "break in" because I feel that is exactly what we experienced. It's not [...]
A Building Rises
I am quite behind on chronicling the progress of building our country barn/apartment. Needless to say, by now it's a recognizable and quite formidable building. But back to where we were: The foundation was poured and since it is a pole barn, the poles are laid out here, ready to go up. The next time I stopped by, the [...]
There Must Be Something to Set Against All This
Whenever something horrible happens like the Islamist terrorist attacks in Paris this past Friday, I ask myself, there must be something to set against all this. This is a line from my favorite movie, Charlotte Gray. The protagonist, a British spy in Vichy France, says, as one of her Jewish benefactors is carted away, “there must be something to set against all [...]